Press Releases: New U.S. Government Initiatives Accelerate Efforts to End the Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic PEPFAR Focuses on Strategic Partnerships and Smart Investments to Achieve an AIDS-free Generation

The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is making good on this year’s World AIDS Day theme – Focus, Partner, Achieve: An AIDS-free Generation. PEPFAR is now focusing its resources on areas hardest hit by HIV/AIDS and on evidence-based programs to deliver on the promise of an AIDS-free generation. Its new public-private partnerships allow the program to leverage the U.S. government’s investment and accelerate progress toward epidemiologic control. Today, PEPFAR announced new initiatives that will advance the global HIV/AIDS response, including those aimed at young women, adolescent girls, children, health systems, and data transparency.

The global HIV/AIDS response is a shared responsibility. In addition to working with partner governments in the 65 countries with bilateral and regional programs, PEPFAR builds strategic public-private partnerships to maximize the U.S. government’s investment. With over 80 percent of new HIV infections among adolescents in the hardest hit countries occurring in girls, the State Department, through PEPFAR, is partnering with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Nike Foundation on a $210 million initiative to reduce new HIV infections in adolescent girls and young women in up to 10 countries. The goal of the partnership is to help girls develop into determined, resilient, empowered, AIDS-free, mentored and safe women. It will provide a core package of evidence-based interventions that have successfully addressed HIV risk behaviors, HIV transmission, and gender-based violence. Evidence shows that girls can reach their full potential when they have access to multiple interventions.

$116.5 Million Investment in Health Systems for Disease Response

Strong health systems are essential for effective and sustainable disease response. Over the past 11 years, PEPFAR investments have built and strengthened partner country health systems – enhancing their capacity to deliver life-saving HIV services, as well as enabling partner governments to train and retain essential health personnel. PEPFAR’s new human resources for health strategy includes a $116.5 million investment that will strengthen the capacity of health workers to address HIV/AIDS across Africa and will pay dividends for PEPFAR’s engagement with some of the world’s most fragile states that are grappling with Ebola and other health threats. As part of this strategy, PEPFAR will expand the role of the Global Health Service Partnership with Peace Corps and Seed Global Health to increase the number of clinicians available to provide HIV services. The strategy also includes PEPFAR’s next phase of its Medical Education Partnership Initiative and Nursing Education Partnership Initiative with Health and Human Services and partner countries. Over the next 5 years, PEPFAR will apply its experience in expanding the quantity and quality of health workforces in countries with high burden of HIV/AIDS, as well as to targeted fragile states experiencing HIV/AIDS and/or other epidemics.

Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are the 10 sub-Saharan African countries selected to participate in the Accelerating Children’s HIV/AIDS Treatment (ACT) Initiative. Launched by PEPFAR and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) in August 2014, ACT is an ambitious $200 million effort to double the total number of children receiving live-saving antiretroviral treatment over the next two years across the 10 selected countries – adding an additional 300,000 children on treatment. PEPFAR and CIFF worked together to select the participating countries, which are among those with the lowest access to pediatric treatment, and the greatest disparity in treatment coverage for children compared to adults living with HIV/AIDS. Ensuring that children are healthy and live to adulthood enables them to grow economies, create jobs, and contribute to their families and communities for decades to come.

While 3.2 million children are living with HIV/AIDS today, only one fourth has access to treatment. The Global Pediatric Antiretroviral (ARV) Commitment-to-Action brings together leading organizations to accelerate the development of new high-priority pediatric ARV co-formulations for first- and second-line treatment by 2017. PEPFAR, the Pediatric HIV Treatment Initiative (a collaboration of UNITAID, Clinton Health Access Initiative, Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative, and Medicines Patent Pool), and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria will work together on this Commitment-to-Action. Greater access to HIV medicines will reduce illness and death, particularly among the youngest and most vulnerable children living with HIV/AIDS. To further advance the effort, PEPFAR is contributing $2 million through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to support their work on regulatory systems in Africa, ensuring that quality and safety products (drugs and diagnostic tests) are rapidly approved by national regulatory agencies – this includes new pediatric ARV formulations.

New Era in Data Transparency Takes Sharing and Using Data to New Heights

Sharing and utilizing data effectively is essential for improving programs and holding one another accountable for impact. This is an area where PEPFAR has been recognized for its advancements and leadership, which include working with partner countries. Today, PEPFAR makes another leap forward in data transparency through a new partnership with the Millennium Challenge Corporation to advance the U.S. government’s effort to ensure data openness and transparency. The $21.5 million partnership will establish country-based, country-driven local data hubs to improve strategic planning, quality of care, and ultimately, health outcomes. PEPFAR also announced today that additional data are now available on the PEPFAR Dashboards. Planned budgets, program results, and expenditure data were released this year – commencing the program’s unprecedented turn toward transparency. Now, disaggregated program indicator results data are available—allowing all stakeholders the opportunity to independently analyze the PEPFAR program’s effectiveness and cost efficiency at a granular level.

For more information about PEPFAR’s World AIDS Day announcements, visit www.PEPFAR.gov.